Unfulfilled
by Pam t3h Spam
Summary: [Bierrez/Cesia, some Kharl/Gar/Rath] With the idea of using Bierrez to further his own purposes, Kharl resurrects the yôkai and sends him after Rath. However, Bierrez has some ideas of his own, and an unfulfilled task to complete…
1. Resurrection

Note: Viaresu (Bee-ah-reh-soo)=Bierrez…original version, un-Tokyopop adulterated. With the idea of using Bierrez to further his own purposes, Kharl resurrects the yôkai and sends him after Rath.  However, Bierrez has some ideas of his own, and an unfulfilled task to complete…  [First Bierrez/Cesia fic on Fanfiction.net!] Unfulfilled 

By shinsetsu no kokoro

Chapter One: Resurrection

Darkness.

It was the first thing that his mind registered: the oppressive, absolute darkness, free of even the faintest shadows of gray.  It weighed over him thickly, in its enormity an almost tangible thing.  It threw its heavy mantle over his body, enshrouding him completely in its inky folds, bearing down fiercely.  Tyrannical, commanding, it demanded his surrender.

He almost gave into it.  It would have been the easiest thing, to let himself sink into its unending masses, to rest in the open, welcoming embrace of its nothingness.  More and more his tired body begged to be allowed to stop fighting and float down into it…

…but something tugged him away.  The sense of something important nagged irritatingly just of reach of his thoughts, fought the part of him that grasped toward the seductive oblivion of the utter black.  A feeling, an instinct, a mere fleeting memory that wielded the power to hold him away from the dark. 

How long he silently struggled against the void that fought to pull in, he didn't know.  It could have been mere seconds or countless centuries; time was immeasurable in the unchanging darkness.  Then—after minutes?  millennia?—he felt the presence of something new that drew him far more ferociously than the vacuum of emptiness, a presence that pulled him faster and faster until he lost all sensation of speed—

Viaresu opened his eyes to stare at a cold, nondescriptly gray stone floor.  He was on his hands and knees; around him flickered dim torches that exuded a faintly sweet odor as they burned.  His heart thudded wildly and he could feel beads of sweat rolling down his face.   _A dream? _he wondered, and then immediately dismissed the nothing.  _No…  _The…thing, be it fantasy or hallucination, had been far too vivid for pure imagination.  And if it had been a dream, why was he…here?

Slowly raising himself off the floor, the demon stood and examined his surroundings more closely.  The stone blocks that formed the walls, floor, and ceiling were plain and innocuous, a single wooden door lay in front of him.  _Locked, _he noted grimly.  This was not just a room but a cell.  From the light that entered the small chamber, Viaresu guessed that he was underground.  The room's plain design could have belonged to any of the small castles that peppered the demon lands, and there was no way to tell where he was.

Sighing, Viaresu leaned against the wall at his back and waited for something to happen.  A small, chilly draft blew in from under the crack at the bottom of the door, biting against bare flesh on his upper arm.  Frowning, the yôkai looked down to inspect the tear in his sleeve.  His probing fingers brushed against a hard, crusty stain across the chest and shoulder region, and froze.  It was dried blood.

In a dizzying rush, all the memories of his fight with Rath came rushing back.  Kharl's meddling, the spore planted in his right arm, and…Cesia.  _Cesia'_  He clenched his fists in frustration.  _What happened to Cesia?  _Had he released her in time?  Had she been able to recover from the wounds he had involuntarily inflicted, or was she…his throat constricted… _…dead?  _He pushed back the nagging thought that insisted that _he_ should be dead, focusing on the more important issue.

"Damn!  I don't have time to waste in here…"  He shot a quick glance around the room once again, looking for a way out.  The stones were solid and heavy—the door remained the only solution.  

_Then that is the way I'll have to use… _ Quickly probing his left arm, Viaresu was relieved to find that the small knife he kept hidden under his wrist had not been removed.  Grasping it tightly, he began inspecting the lock mechanism.

There was a scrape of metal against metal just outside the door; he backed away from the door but kept his dagger ready, fingers running tensely over the cold bone handle.

As the heavy door creaked open, light flared blindingly into the dim interior, flooding every crevice.  "Kuso…" Viaresu cursed, throwing one arm over his eyes to protect them from the glare.  Accustomed to the darkness, his eyes watered painfully in contact with the bright light.

Footsteps approached, then walked around him with the clanking of keys and the faint whisper of fabric against stone.  Still shielding his eyes from the agonizing glow of bright daylight, Viaresu was all too aware of how vulnerable he was at the moment.  He couldn't see a single thing; the only way he was able to tell where his captor stood was by following the noise he or she made.  The unknown person stood silent, apparently waiting for something.

More footsteps could be heard, once again from the direction of the door, as another person entered the stone chamber.  The new arrival stayed near the entrance, quiet for a few moments, before he/she spoke.  "How is he?"  

_That voice… _Viaresu hissed to himself as he cautiously peeked around his arm with one eye.  The light no longer blinded him, but he could discern no more than a blurry figure silhouetted at the doorway.  The voice was uneasily familiar and unpleasant.

"I think he just woke up," was the reply from the first person standing behind Viaresu.  "He seems to be doing ok."  They appeared to be talking about him.

"What is wrong with him?"

"Nothing much, just his eyes.  He's getting used to the light."  There was a hint of a sneer in the voice as the person added, "He doesn't seem to happy about his situation."

A chuckle from the other.  "No…I don't suppose I would be, either."

_Don't tell me…  _Viaresu thought with growing suspicion, _…it's…_

Narrowing his eyes against the glow, Viaresu glared at the white-haired demon who stood before him.  His captor smiled, lifting a hand to stroke the bird perched on his shoulder.  "So you still recognize me, Viaresu.  Wonderful."

"…You!"  Viaresu snarled as the hand hidden behind his back scrabbled for the dagger handle.  "Not you again."  _The alchemist…Kharl…_

"Yes, I.  Is that any way to treat your rescuer?"

"Hmph," Viaresu snorted contemptuously.  "Don't act a fool.  My rescuer?"

Kharl sighed theatrically and continued stroking his pet.  "How ungrateful you are…and I went to all the trouble of bringing you back to life."

"Back…to life?"  His mind had frozen on that thought.

"You were dead, yôkai," Garfakcy jutted in coldly.  "Rath killed you."

_Rath…killed me?  _Cesia…Rath…he'd asked…that black void…  _Ah…yes…I recall now…_

"Don't you remember?"  This time the alchemist's voice was sharp and more businesslike.  "My spells should have allowed you to retain all your memories…"  Frowning, Kharl added, "It has never failed."

Swallowing, Viaresu pushed back the nausea he felt for a more convenient time and focused his gaze on the renkin wizard, letting his anger surface and lend heat to his glare.  "You will not get a chance to use me again," he stated grimly.  "I am leaving here."  He stepped toward Kharl and the door.

A smile lit Kharl's face, a warm, friendly, open smile.  A smile that didn't reach his icy eyes.  It reminded Viaresu of the dark chasm of his dreams, something falsely comforting and unutterably dangerous.  The yôkai stopped mid-step at the unvoiced threat in the other's words as Kharl spoke.  

"You _will_ leave here, Viaresu…but only when I want you to."

End Chapter One

And there goes my pathetic attempt at a cliffhanger…O.o;;;  This is my first Dragon Knights ficcie, and I think it's gonna be a Viaresu/Cesia.  And yes…once again, Viaresu=Bierrez.  I used "Bierrez" in the summary cuz it's the one most ppl know…but I'm sticking with the original Japanese "Viaresu", which is pronounced _basically_ the same way…STUPID TOKYOPOP FUCKED UP HIS NAME!  *Storms Tokyopop's presses and kills all the head translators*  

Viaresu:  O_o;;;  .  …Smart…

What?  ^^  That made me feel better!

Viaresu: Just think about it…

…  …  …AH!  NOW WHO'S GONNA TRANSLATE DRAGON KNIGHTS FOR ME?!  T_T

Viaresu:  Finally…that took a while…

T_T  Oops…


	2. Escape

Random Thoughts:  My little sister is such an idiot…she's just screaming into my ear while I'm TRYING to type this chappie…ugh…-_-; With the idea of using Bierrez to further his own purposes, Kharl brings the yôkai back to life.  However, Bierrez has some ideas of his own, and an unfulfilled task to complete…  [First Bierrez/Cesia fic on Fanfiction.net!] Unfulfilled 

By Sango-chan

Chapter Two: Escape

"Ugh…"  Panting heavily from exertion, Viaresu managed to pull himself up the cliff and flung his body down on the cool, rocky surface.  He rested there for a few minutes, chancing a look backwards.  The castle from which he had fled was a mere dot on the horizon, but he had even farther to travel.  Squinting against the first dim rays of sunlight, Viaresu took a moment to orientate himself and then headed off slightly more to the east.  If he remembered right, the Dragon Palace was that way…

The noonday sun was bright and fierce; little shade could be found in the barren, sand swept plains where the Misty Valley and its neighboring forests had once been.  Where there had once been an abundance of lush life, Viaresu could now sense nothing of any other living being…or almost nothing.  A niggling sensation tugged at the edges of his awareness, and he could tell it was a demon.  There was no way to determine anything else about the yôkai that lurked somewhere near, save for the raw, desperate, single-minded hunger that the unknown creature exuded.  Viaresu walked cautiously, his eyes darting about the landscape, ever wary of attack.  For the thousandth time that day he wished that he still had his staff, but that had been lost, according to Kharl…

_"It has been quite a while since you last walked in this world.  Three months, to be precise."  Kharl inspected Viaresu's magically enhanced right arm carefully, speaking as he worked on it.  "It is amazing, actually.  All I had to do was use the usual necromancy spells on you…most beings that have lain dead for more than a few days have to be called back in much more forceful ways.  You, Viaresu…you must have a very strong hold on life…"  The alchemist favored him with a knowing smile._

_He remained silent.  He wouldn't let the demon goad him into saying anything foolish; the renkin wizard already knew far too much about his motivations for comfort._

_"…and so, that makes you the ideal weapon for me to use," Kharl was now saying.  "You see, for a while now I have been interested in a new experiment, concerning that Dragon Knight of Fire...Rath Eryuseru."_

'What?!'  _Viaresu listened more intently, but feigned boredom._

_"Of course, I need him here for that experiment to take place.  And that is why I need you, Viaresu."  Kharl had finished his examination now, and he stood straight to stare directly into the other demon's eyes.  "You can penetrate the Lord's shield.  You can bring Rath to me."_

_"If you think that I'll carry out your—!"_

_"I wouldn't try anything, Viaresu.  I've just added a few extra poison spores to that arm of yours…just as a safety precaution.  I don't think you'll be foolish enough to test them out."_

Luckily enough, Kharl hadn't thought to use any magic to keep Viaresu under restraint, only ordering Garfakcy to have him locked up in that room again.  Viaresu's mouth twisted into a grim smile.  _'A fool?  Maybe I am…but not as much of one as you.'  _It had taken mere minutes to figure out the lock on the door, and a simple spell had silenced the rusty hinges.  Viaresu had slipped out of the castle long before dawn, and if his luck held out, Kharl wouldn't notice a thing until he was far gone.

_'He won't be able to reach me if he doesn't know where I am.  The Dragon Palace will be the last place that alchemist will search.'_

Stepping out of the deadly quiet into a small glade, Viaresu breathed a sigh of relief.  The demon hadn't attacked him, and most likely wouldn't chance an encounter now.  The yôkai quickened his pace, recognizing some of the scenery around him.  The Palace was only half a day's walk.  It would have been far quicker to use a spell, of course, but he wasn't giving Kharl any leads on his whereabouts.

A nearby bird trilled a note, and Viaresu winced involuntarily.  The birdsong was harsh and unfamiliar to his ears, the hues of the foliage over bright and crude.  It had been that way for the whole day: a flower, the lively chatter of forest animals…they all made him unnecessarily uneasy.  _'What's wrong with me?' _he wondered, squinting against the suddenly hot sun.  _'Even that…since when have I been so bothered by the sun?'_

Seeking respite in the cool, dark recesses of a rocky overhang, he allowed the soothing silence to envelop him.  And suddenly, everything became clear.  He didn't feel cold, but still shivered.  _'I don't belong out there… here…' _Viaresu thought blankly as he stared at the bright, friendly forest, quivering with life.  _'Not anymore.'  _A vision appeared in his mind's eye; the black void called, and he knew without a doubt that it would have him back.  It was confident, It knew that he would come back to It; he was helpless before Its massive nothingness.

_'No…' _Viaresu thought as he rose from the no longer welcoming overhang.  _'Not yet.  First I will deal with Cesia…and Kharl.'  _He grew cold inside, a cold to match that of the void.  _'Kharl…I will make sure you suffer slowly…'_

A warm smile.  Laughing eyes, the impudent voice.  A sense of wholeness that came with her presence.

_'No,' _he repeated to himself.  _'Cesia first.'  _He knew what his priority was: to obtain Cesia, to keep her from what might happen if she remained around Rath…his fists clenched as he remembered the reason for making that staff, shaping it himself, creating a weapon that he could depend on, a painful lesson learned from his first encounter with Rath.  _'He won't be able to hurt Cesia like he hurt me…I _won't _let him.'_

Viaresu walked on towards the heart of Dusis, and an ironic smile tugged at his mouth.  _'Well, Kharl, it looks like I'll be doing the task you handed me after all.  You want me to retrieve Rath for you…I just might be doing more than that to him.  And then…when Cesia is safe…'  _He rubbed his right arm, '…_Then I will deal with that alchemist…that meddling, double-dealing…'_

*****

"Kharl!"  His thudding footsteps echoing through the silence of the empty corridors, Garfakcy glanced quickly into each room he passed as he searched through the castle.  "Kharl-sama!"

Skidding to a halt at the entrance to the gardens, Garfakcy stared at his master with a look of disbelief on his face.  "Kharl-sama…_what_ are you doing?!"

Seated in the midst of a jumble of tiny scraps of wood, Kharl absentmindedly pushed back a stray lock of hair as he stared at the mess in front of him with brows furrowed in concentration.  "Not now, Garfakcy.  I'm looking for the left top corner of the puzzle…"

"The…puzzle?"  Moving closer, Garfakcy could see that the scraps of wood were in fact tiny puzzle pieces.  "But Kha—"

"Yes, yes," the alchemist answered impatiently, still searching through the pile of unused pieces.  "Now if I could just find that…aha!"  Triumphantly grasping a piece, Kharl fitted it neatly into his partly-finished jigsaw.  "There!  Now only one more corner to find…"

"KHARL-SAMA!"

"Yes, yes…eh?"  Pasting a nervous smile on his face, the yôkai finally looked up at his servant.  "Er…what is it, Garfakcy?"

"Kharl-sama!  How can you be doing…that…" Garfakcy indicated the half-done puzzle with an angry jab of his finger, "…At a time like this?!"

" 'A time like this?' " Kharl echoed, his expression confused.  What _do_ you mean?"

"Viaresu is gone!"

"Oh, is that it?"  Losing interest, the alchemist returned to fitting pieces of his puzzle together, mumbling to himself as he did so.  "Hrm…let's see…this goes here…oh, drat, no it doesn't!  Wait…aha!  Got you, you little…"

"Is…that…it?"  A look of bemused disbelief on his face, Garfakcy slumped down as if he hadn't the strength to stand any more.  "…Kharl-sama…but…but…Viaresu has escaped!  Used some magic to pick the lock!  Don't you care where he went?  I thought you were going to use him for your new experiment!"

"I still am."

"B-but—!"  Stammering frustratedly, the human once again questioned his wisdom in staying with Kharl.

"Oh, don't worry, Garfakcy.  This fits right into my plan," Kharl reassured him, turning his attention away from the jigsaw puzzle.  "You see, I have a very good idea of where our friend has gone…right to the Dragon Palace."

Sighing, Garfakcy leaned against a tree in the mellow sunshine of the garden as he watched his master working intently on his puzzle.  There were times when he doubted Kharl's sanity, but the alchemist always had a good reason for doing what he did (most of the time).  He'd just have to trust him on this one.

****

"Ah—ah—a_choo_!"  Stopping to grope in her pocket for a handkerchief, Cesia bumped right into Rath.

"Do you have a cold?" the Dragon Knight asked eagerly.  "Maybe I should make you some of my special rice porridge—you know, the one I fed you before at Mount Empha—"

"N-no!"  Cesia hurriedly butted in.  "I'm not sick!  Really!"

"Alright…" Rath replied, looking a little let down.  "Well then…let's go."  He headed off again.

_'That was close.'  _Breathing a deep sigh of relief, Cesia found the handkerchief and blew her nose on it, shuddering at the memory of Rath's "porridge".  _'Thank God…I don't think I could live through another bowl of that.'  _She hurriedly trotted off after Rath.

"Thanks for waiting," she said sarcastically as she caught up.  "You shouldn't leave—"  The fortuneteller broke off as she looked around her slowly.  "Hey…this isn't the way to the Palace…RATH!"

The Dragon Knight jumped guiltily.  "It isn't?" he asked in a falsely innocent tone.

"You're just trying to find more demons to fight, aren't you!"  Cesia accused.  Honou, riding on Rath's shoulder, held up a sign for her.  'Bingo!'  "Shut up," Rath snarled, shoving his dragon's sign out of the way.

"I should've known you would do this!  Why can't you just do what the Lord says for once and actually get back when he tells you to?  All you ever think of is killing demons and more demons until you do something stupid and end up getting yourself killed…"

_'Does she ever shut up? ' _Rath wondered idly as he tuned out his companion's ranting and stared at the sky.  _'Hey…that cloud looks kinda like a demon…wonder if there are any so close to the Palace.  Maybe Cesia's shouting will attract a demon's attention!  Then I could…wait, she **stopped**?!  It hasn't even been five minutes!'_

Cesia had in fact stopped, for she was once again overcome by a fit of sneezing.  "Achoo!  Achoo!  Ah-a_chooooo_!"

"You are sick, aren't you?"  Giving her a suspicious look, Rath added, "You know, last time when I made that porridge for you, you got better fast, so—"

"I'm NOT sick!" she snapped back, her patience wearing thin.  "Make that porridge for me again and I'll stuff it down your throat."

"Fine, fine…" he mumbled, backing down at that threat.  "I was just trying to _help_…"

Steering the Dragon Knight back on course, Cesia saw the Palace looming up ahead and smiled.  "Hey, look, we're here already!"  She sneezed again.

"If you're not sick, then why are you sneezing so much?" Rath questioned, not daring to mention the porridge this time.

"I don't know."  They walked into the Dragon Palace, where a horde of maids hurried to them and led them to rooms to be bathed, dressed, and fed.

_'If I didn't know better I'd say someone was thinking about me…'_

End Chapter Two

Awww…Viaresu-kun sounds so saaaaaaaad!  T_T  Poor Viaresu…*huggles*

Viaresu:  *Tied up in his customary chair in the corner*  I hate you, do you know that?!

But…but…why?  *Mumbles to self*  It can't be the fact that I stole his Cesia plushie…or that I kept him tied up in that chair for two weeks…or that I got him drunk and made him sign…

Viaresu:  …  -_-;

Btw, didja know Kharl-sama's name is spelled along the lines of Karulu?  ^^  Funky, ne?  Don't worry, though, I won't change everyone's names to original…that would bee a little too confusing to everyone!  …Or maybe I will, and just give you a little chart of who's who…*mumbles*

Currently (in this fic), Rath, Honou (Fire), and Cesia have just returned from Mount Emphaza.  So right now Rath and Cesia care for each other but it's not THAT deeply rooted yet.  Rune and Thats are back, too, Nohiro and Kaistern are journeying alone, and the Lord and Alfeegi are still gone.  Also, Kharl hasn't yet used his disguise of "Avis Rara" (which comes later in the DK series, not yet translated) to get into the Dragon Palace, and so he would need Viaresu.  About the porridge…well, in manga volume 8 (not yet translated), Cesia gets a cold and Rath makes her this porridge that almost kills her.  He feeds it to Kaistern, too, and…well, I feel sorry for everyone who was forced to try it!  ^^  Later, Cesia force-feeds Rath his own hideous cooking.  XP  Poor Rath!

Last thought:  I think Viaresu's weapon (the bladed staff) is called a glaive.  Anyone wanna check that out?


	3. Unrest

Random Thoughts:  One bad thing about writing an alternate pairing: they usually don't become that popular.  One good thing about writing an alternate pairing: neglecting your fic for too long results in you being maimed instead of killed by angry reviewers.  XDD  Am I perhaps sounding a little too melodramatic?  …Well…*winces*…As an author of ONLY alternate pairings (all others Inuyasha), I have found that sometimes, the alternate fics can turn out kinda popular…and I can still get creamed…oO;  *Hides* 

_Remember!!!: _Viaresu=Bierrez…and Viales/Vierres/Biaresu.  XP  (--Has given up on not confusing ppl…never seems to work.)

With the idea of using Bierrez to further his own purposes, Kharl resurrects the yôkai and sends him after Rath.  However, Bierrez has some ideas of his own, and an unfulfilled task to complete…  [First Bierrez/Cesia fic on Fanfiction.net!] Unfulfilled 

By shinsetsu no kokoro

Chapter Three: Unrest

"One day."  Boots clicked smartly along the polished floors of one of the Dragon Palace's many balconies as their owner paced restlessly up and down.

"One day."  This time the words were said louder, almost shouted, bouncing and echoing across the smooth white corridors.  Rath looked hopefully towards the doors, almost wishing that Alfeegi or Tetheus would come charging out to scold him.  Anything to relieve the depressing boredom that was quickly settling over the Dragon Knight.

"One day back, and I'm already sick of this place…" Rath sighed, giving up his fruitless call for excitement.  He slid down to lean against the balcony railing, the slatted shadows falling over his face.  As Rath watched rays of sunlight streak across the immense Palace gardens, he fell into a half-doze, absentmindedly playing with a small bell in his hand.  Just as he was really about to fall asleep, a flash of movement deep in the most shadowed depths of the garden caught his eye.

The Dragon Knights stood abruptly, all traces of boredom and sleep erased.  The fiery flash of yôkai magic died down, but Rath continued staring at the spot.  His fist clenched over the bell, and, with a burst of light, he was holding the Dragon Sword in one hand.

Gaze still fixed unmovingly on the garden and jaw clenched, Rath vaulted over the railing and landed silently on the grassy lawn below.  He broke into a half-run, half-trot as he headed for the source of the disturbance.  He recognized that magical signature—how could he not, when the memory of that encounter was so fresh in his mind?  

_Impossible, _he told himself, but the evidence screamed otherwise even as Rath tried to fool himself into safer thoughts.  The only yôkai who dared to, and could, break into the Dragon Palace's grounds…

_Viaresu._

*****

The smoke blurred before Viaresu's eyes, making his vision swing in crazy, erratic, half-circles before coming to a sudden halt, revealing the lush landscaping of the Dragon Palace.  Looking around, the yôkai scowled, realizing that he was quite a distance away from the main compounds.  Everything seemed to be complicating his mission.  It had taken a whole day to reach the Dragon Palace, because Viaresu was forced to duck out of sight every time one of Nadil's yôkai came his way—which happened too often for comfort.

_Nadil seems to be making a lot of progress, _the yôkai thought to himself.  _Demons everywhere, and the humans don't notice it at all.  Dusis, Draqueen, the Dragon Palace…they'll all be overrun in no time._

_But that isn't my problem, _he reminded himself.  _Not my problem at all.  Concentrate…_

Time was of the essence: Kharl was probably already on his tail by now, given the huge burst of magic required to pass through the Dragon Lord's shield.  He was lucky that none of the Dragons had spotted him; this time, he'd taken the trouble to place a powerful ward around himself.  The magic he used couldn't be felt by any of the Dragons, not even the Lord.  And if no one had seen the burst of magic…

A rustling of the foliage caught his attention, and Viaresu gritted his teeth in frustration.  _It seems I spoke too soon, _he thought, cursing himself for not picking a spot that was not visible from the Palace.  He ducked behind a rock, hoping beyond hope that whoever was here was simply taking a walk.

"Viaresu!!"  Footsteps were headed his way now.  "I know you're there!"

Well, he wasn't going to hide behind here like a frightened human.  Straightening, the yôkai molded his face into a carefully emotionless expression and stepped out.

_Rath…!_

*****

Kharl stopped in the middle of his perusal of the large spellbook before him, turning his attention to a small circle roughly etched in the stone wall.  He watched for a moment longer, and then a satisfied smile curled the alchemist's lips.

"Ah…" he whispered softly.  "The hunt has begun."

*****

_Of all the Dragons…  _Viaresu eyed the Knight suspiciously, one hand unsheathing the long dagger he had bought in Draqueen.  _Not one of their pathetic fighters, not even the Dragon Lord himself…  _His fingers latched onto the flimsy weapon, and he wished desperately to feel the familiar wood of his glaive.  The dagger was weak and useless, against the other's magicked blade.  _…but _him_._

_It really is him!  _Up to now, Rath had still harbored fantasies that he had been mistaken, that Viaresu could not be back.  But the proof before his own eyes dismissed such delusions immediately.  _He's back.  _Rath's thoughts flickered to Cesia, and he panicked a little.  _For the same reasons as before?  I won't let him have her!  No yôkai will have her powers…  _

Rath gripped the Dragon Sword tighter, and he could feel himself calming down, his alertness heightening and a cool veil settling over his mind.  His fingertips stroked the smooth metal lovingly.  The sensation was pleasant and familiar: this was what he loved, and this was what he did best.

"Remember me, Viaresu?  Remember?  It's demon hunting time."

He remembered.

Rain lashing down, cold steel at his throat, Rath's smiling face.  And his last request to his own killer: _protect Cesia_. Desperate, seizing on to the last, faintest hope, he had asked.  But now, looking into the smirking face, the face of a hardened killer, Viaresu deeply regretted the last words of his previous life.

"You're going to fight me, youkai.  And then you're going to die," Rath continued.  Soft laughter pealed forth, joyous, carefree: a child's laugh in the body of a murdering beast.  So much zealous anticipation at the thought of death was captured in that innocent sound.  Rath was as ready to kill as ever.

Viaresu's resolve tightened at the thought.  _Killing is his obsession…and who knows when that bloodlust will drive his attentions to Cesia?  She's in danger every minute she's with _him_.  _The adrenaline was tingling in his veins, but the yôkai knew beyond a doubt that he could not win.  Not here, not now, not with this flimsy blade.

"I'm not here to fight you, Rath."  He was angry now, and the words came out harsh and clear.  "Don't play the fool.  What could be accomplished by a battle now?"

Rath's eyes were on him like a cat with a mouse, following his every move.

"Your death," the Dragon Knight replied, feeling the Dragon Sword's power flowing through him.  "…And Cesia's safety.  You're back to get her, aren't you?  I'll send you to the grave…again."

The Dragon Knight's sword bent closer, as if yearning to reach forth and taste blood.

"Cesia's safety?"  Viaresu paused and gazed steadily at his opponent, eyes searching.  "Is that what you really want, Rath…Iryuuzaa?"

Rath flinched involuntarily.  "Don't call me that!"

"Why?  Because you know what you did back then?  How many elves, humans, demons, and Dragons died at your claws?"  The yôkai's eyes flashed contempt.  "You belong to no race.  You're a monster, a killing machine.  You were out of control, leaving mountains corpses in your wake…"

"That's not true anymore!"  Rath shouted back.  "That is…was…my past.  Shut up now.  You're _dead_."

Viaresu continued, heedless of the threat.  "Why ignore me, Iryuuzaa?  I am one of the few who witnessed your savagery firsthand and live still to tell about it."  He took a cautious step forward, blade out, his voice low and contemptuous.  "Look at you."  Rath's hands flew suddenly to his own face, feeling the cheeks hot with battle-lust, tracing around blood-tinged eyes.  "Your true blood still shows.  How can you say you can protect Cesia?  Will you not one day find her blood staining your hands?"

"I said, SHUT UP!" Rath was breathing heavily now, his sharp gasps harsh and loud in the silence.  "Shut up," he repeated tersely.  "Don't distract me, or I'll make sure you die slow and painful."  His eyes began to flared up suddenly, dangerously, and the Dragon Sword was up and pointed at Viaresu's heart.  

"You—"  Viaresu stiffened suddenly, his sentence unfinished.  Something was calling inside his head, ringing insistently, incessantly.

_Rath…Rath…get Rath…_

His hand moved jerkily forward of its own accord, the dagger lifted.  He couldn't control his own arm any longer, nor his body, as the voice rose and throbbed.  Viaresu could feel himself losing control as his own mind slipped away from him…

_Just like last time…_

Rath was staring at him now, sword lowered, his mouth moving in funny, blurred little waves.  The Dragon Knight's face winked in and out mockingly from the darkness that now enclosed Viaresu's sight.

_No…_

He grasped at the last bits of willpower that were rapidly slipping away.  _No!  _His lips were numb, stiffened, but somehow he forced the words of the incantation out.

"Fresai…njen…gaodon krish…na…"

The teleportation spell wrapped him up, and the Dragon Palace became a hazy blur in the distance.  Rath and the grounds disappeared from view, and Viaresu's last discernable sight was that of the Dragon Knight's face, shocked and angry, before he fell unconscious.

End Chapter Three


	4. Reminiscence

Random Thoughts:  Um...O_O  You're asking for actual, thinking thoughts here...eheh 

_Remember!!!: _Viaresu=Bierrez…and Viales/Vierres/Biaresu.  XP  If you're still confused (yeah I know you are), er...email me...or...something...AIM: BunnyxRathSlayer/chibitotoroPLUSH

With the idea of using Bierrez to further his own purposes, Kharl resurrects the yôkai and sends him after Rath.  However, Bierrez has some ideas of his own, and an unfulfilled task to complete…  [First Bierrez/Cesia fic on Fanfiction.net!] Unfulfilled 

By Rurouni Chaos (formerly shinsetsu no kokoro...ahem...)

Chapter Four: Reminiscence

"Hey...is he ok?  He's not..._dead_...right?"

"How am I supposed to know?  I'm not a damn doctor!"

"Aw, shaddup...he's coming round, anyhow..."

His head throbbed.  _Not the most pleasant of awakenings_, Viaresu thought fuzzily, and sat up.  He paid dearly for even that small movement as dark dots spun crazily before his eyes.  Slowly, painfully, his vision swam back into focus, revealing the sole room of a claustrophobic hovel, darkened and musty.  A face appeared in his line of vision, a dirty-faced teenager who stared at him curiously. 

"Hey, are you—yaaaah!!"  The boy flopped helplessly in Viaresu's grip, trying futilely to tear strong fingers from his shirt collar.  The thin fabric tore with a loud rending sound, followed by an even louder thud as the youth dropped ungracefully, face first, into the dirt floor.  The two other humans in the room, both boys of about the same age as the first, backed away nervously.

"You didn't hafta do that, ya know," one spoke up.  "We were trying to help..." His eyes slid to his companion, who was scuttling backwards on all fours, not bothering to pick himself up first.  "And you tore Raico's shirt," he added in complaint.

"Where is this?" Viaresu asked, ignoring the boy's question.

"Uh...Draqueen...south side of the city.  That's where we found you.  You looked dead, so we just dragged you in here."  The teen's voice rose to a wheedling whine.  "And so here we were doing that to _help_ you and you wake up and _attack_ us..."

"Enough," Viaresu interrupted brusquely, with just enough suggestion of a growl in his voice to shut the boy up.  "How far is the Dragon Palace from here?"

  
"Dragons?" The first boy—Raico, his friend called him—had slid forward, listening with interest to the dialogue, and now he spoke up eagerly.  "The Dragon Tribe?  You mean you're..." His eyes flicked to Viaresu's pointed ears, to his strange eyes, and lingered still longer on the glints of silver on his gauntlet and necklace, "...a Dragon?  The palace is a few miles up north," he added as an afterthought.

"No.  Thank you for the directions, if they're accurate."  Standing, Viaresu wrenched the door open with a soft squelch of rotting wood.  Cold air blew in, diffusing the odor of unwashed human and decaying food in the cramped room.  He stepped out.

The three boys stared silently after their departed visitor, a figure growing steadily smaller in the distance.  At last, Raico spoke up, his voice accompanied by the rhythmic squeaking of the broken door.  "So that means you're a demon?"

_Right back where I started._  Viaresu cursed quietly as he made his way out of the slums of Draqueen, picking carefully through heaps of garbage thrown haphazardly about and puddles of dirty water caused by backed-up sewage ditches.  The stink of human civilization gone wrong pervaded his senses, and the demon wrinkled his nose in disgust—both at the smell and at his own failure.

He would have to go back again, try again, before any more time was wasted—

_No, _Viaresu amended, slowing his walk a little.  _First, I need some sort of plan.  _That had been his mistake the first time; he'd just imagined getting in and getting out, not allowing room for any sort of obstacle at all.  _This _time he would have a real plan.

On the outskirts of Draqueen and near the gates of the Dragon Palace, a single yôkai slid into the shadows and began to plan.  

*****

Rath rocked back and forth on his heels.  He licked his lips nervously, glancing at the glossy head of black curls.  _Why am I this nervous?  Why should I be scared of her?!_

He winced.  He knew.  Cesia was _scary_, no other word for it.  Sometimes it seemed that she blew up at the slightest provocation, over things that puzzled him to no end.  And with the power that that girl had, getting her ticked off at you was not a smart thing to do.  Rath teased her often enough, sure, but he had also learned her limits and tried not to cross them.  He was successful, too...well, most of the time.

_One powerful wind sorceress... _Should he tell her about Viaresu?  There was always the chance, however slight, that the yôkai would get past him somehow and attempt once more to lay his hands on Cesia's powers.  Hell knew Viaresu was crafty enough.

_One powerful, pissed off wind sorceress... _If Rath did tell her, he was ready to bet his sword on the fact that Cesia would explode.  Literally.  And unless some miracle occurred, he was also ready to bet that some of that anger would be falsely directed towards a certain innocent or two...namely himself.  Of course, if she found out about it anyway, and then found out that he had known but not told her...well, that was a chance that Rath was simply going to have to take.  His mind made up, Rath did a smart about-face and headed away from Cesia's rooms, determined that she should never know.

Unfortunately, a rather attractive and expensive-looking vase dashed Rath's impressive plan to smithereens.  To be precise, the vase dashed itself to smithereens as well, producing a fairly loud crash of shattered porcelain...

"Who's there??  Orien...Griff, Captain?  Your Majesty?"

_Damn that girl and her yôkai hearing..._(still, even Rath had to admit to himself that only a stuffed frog could possibly have not heard that crash).  As soft, cautious footsteps drew nearer, Rath pasted on the guileless smile that had worked so well on the Dragon Queen and Officers when he was younger and cuter.  He crossed his fingers and hoped for the best.

Ah, but he wasn't so young and cute anymore.

"What the hell are YOU doing here?"  Feet planted, hands on hips, and, _ouch_, Rath winced, a fire in her eyes that boded ill for him...

"You better not be sneaking around spying on me...again!  For your information, you won't find any yôkai to fight around here; _so_ sorry to spoil your plans.  Viaresu is dead and gone—..."

He leapt at the chance to divert her attention.  "Oho, Viaresu again?" Rath didn't really have to ask; her face was enough to tell the tale.  As Cesia spoke the word 'dead', her lips tightened curiously.  Her voice trailed off, and a little of the anger died out of her eyes.  The dragon knight had just a second to catch an oddly un-Cesia-like look on her face before she resumed her tirade.

"Yes, so what about it?  I can't mention him at all even though _you're_ still drooling over the memory of that great yôkai fight?" 

_Defensive..._Rath noted with a hunter's careful eye for weakness.  _Too defensive for something as trivial as that._

"...Anyways, that's beside the point," Cesia was continuing.  "I still can't believe you were spying on me again!  God, Rath, you are _so_—"

Hurrying to stem the flow of her angry rebuke, Rath butted in with another question.  "What exactly was your relationship with Viaresu?" 

_Arrgh. _He could have slapped himself.  How stupid did he have to be to keep bringing up a topic so dangerously close to the one he was trying to avoid?  He was going to have to tread carefully from here on out...but even that danger didn't make his curiosity any less intense.

To his surprise, the question provoked no furious outburst.  It was Cesia, now, who seemed uncomfortable with the conversation.  "_Nothing_."

Rath snorted derisively.  "Yeah, right."

She glared; sighed; plopped herself on the ground across from him.  "You want the full story?  I'll tell you.  Viaresu…Viaresu was…"

"He was what?" Rath prodded helpfully, only earning himself another angry glare.

"I never _asked_ for him to hang around me all the time," Cesia said quickly.  "…He was just there.  After awhile, I got used to him."  She paused, smiling wryly.  "He wasn't exactly what you'd call, well, _nice_.  But he wasn't like Nadil's other youkai, either.  He treated me like…like a person."

Cesia shifted, looking no longer at Rath but at the ground.  He couldn't read her expression, but her voice when she spoke was bitter.  "I was Nadil's weapon, his precious jewel.  Every youkai knew about me.  Every youkai either wanted me to enhance their own power, or they wanted to use me to prove how loyal they were to Nadil."

Then the bitterness left her voice, to be replaced with a thoughtful, almost dreamy quality.  "That time I first met Viaresu…he saved my life."

Rath looked at her sharply, startled.  She seemed not to notice, still staring downwards.

"Of course I thought he was just another wannabe trying to use me to get something from Nadil.  But I didn't want to die, so I went along with him.  He went through all these heroics, even got his friends killed; that didn't surprise me: Nadil's youkai are ruthless when it comes to gaining prestige.  What did surprise me is when we made it out of there alive, he never stayed around to collect a reward from Nadil.  It was like he didn't _care_ about it."  Her tone dripped disbelief.

Cesia swung around, facing Rath again.  "You asked me what Viaresu was?  Viaresu was different.  Different from all the youkai; different from anyone I've ever known."

_But I already know that_.  A quick flash of Viaresu's last plea before he had surrendered himself—_surrendered!_—rang in Rath's ears for a moment.  _I know he's different.  What I want to know is what that meant to you._

Too late, he realized that Cesia was still speaking.  The dragon knight hurriedly tuned in again.

"He came back to visit me a lot when I lived with the witch.  I have no idea how he found me.  And I still had no idea why he'd left me without taking his reward."  She scowled.  "He would never tell me _anything_ at all!  I swear he did it just to make me angry.   After a couple of years, I stopped asking him why.  And I found out that Viaresu was fun to tease.  He got mad so easily," she added, laughing softly.

"So you were _friends_?" Rath blurted out accusingly before he could stop himself.

It was a bad move.  Cesia's smile dropped with the suddenness of a door being slammed shut.  "Yes, maybe we were.  You got your answer, and that's it.  Isn't that what you wanted, Rath Iryuuzaa?  You may leave now."

_"Is that what you really want, Rath…Iryuuzaa?"_

The similarity was stunning, shocking.  Rath offered no resistance as Cesia pushed him down the hallway towards his own rooms.  It was only after she had already shut the door behind him that he recovered enough to stare after her.

"You said you were friends," he called, knowing she couldn't hear.  "But wasn't it more than that?"

End Chapter Four

A/N:  I'm a Viaresu/Cesia shipper.  Good gosh, answer that question yourself.  Or perhaps I'm tormenting you purposely and I mean something different.  Meheheheh.  P


	5. Fate

Random Thoughts: I love Viaresu SO MUCH...as if you didn't know that already. xD

_Remember: _ViaresuBierrez…and Viales/Vierres/Biaresu.

With the idea of using Bierrez to further his own purposes, Kharl resurrects the yôkai and sends him after Rath. However, Bierrez has some ideas of his own, and an unfulfilled task to complete… First Bierrez/Cesia fic on Pam t3h Spam (formerly 3 gazillion other pennames xD)

Chapter Five: Fate

"You don't understand. I _have_ to go!"

The dragon fighter shook his head, his hands trembling slightly as he remembered how much power resided in the body of the girl standing before him. But Lord Lykouleon's orders were firm: no one was allowed in or out of the castle without his express permission.

"Argh!" Cesia threw up her hands in frustration. "This is the most stupid rule ever. What is this, the Dragon Palace or a prison? Isn't this stupid?" She shot the last question at the gate guard, who nodded his head, afraid to disagree.

"I knew it! No one likes this rule—no one at all! So why is there one like this? I'm the fortuneteller, and if I'm to do my job correctly, I need to buy a new batch of moonstones from the markets. Tell me, can anyone accurately predict the first thunderstorm without a moonstone?" The guard shook his head, completely clueless.

"But Lady Cesia...it's dangerous out there."

She whirled, eyes steely. "I am a yôkai. And a wind sorceress. I think I can handle the dangers of the city."

He shook his head. "Not this time. Sir Rath let it slip that he was fighting a yôkai right here in Draqueen—_and it got away_."

Cesia stared, silenced by this pronouncement. "But...he never lets yôkai get away," she whispered when she had regained her voice.

"Exactly. It must have been terribly strong, but he won't say what kind of yôkai it is. Sir Alfeegi was...very unhappy with him." A bead of sweat ran down the dragon fighter's nose as he remembered exactly how angry the White Dragon Officer had been. "_Very_ unhappy," he repeated. "So now there's a rule about leaving the palace until the yôkai has been tracked down and killed."

"...I see," Cesia said thoughtfully. "Well, I understand now. Thanks for explaining it to me." She smiled sweetly at the guard, her face the paragon of innocence.

The guard watched her go, feeling distinctly uneasy about the situation. Somehow, Lady Cesia's quiet compliance was more upsetting than one of her tantrums.

-------

"Wow! These are the most perfect moonstones I've ever seen!" Cesia exclaimed, examining the smooth white rock in her hand. The milky surface was pure and unflawed, translucent enough for her to catch a glimpse of the iridescent black core within. "They're absolutely gorgeous."

"Thank you, milady." The plump storekeeper beamed at her. "They are beautiful, if I do say so myself. And exceptionally hard, too—better than steel. In fact, some people have taken to crafting weapons with these things. A blade made from moonstones is sharp and magically powerful." He winked at her. "And a bargain, too!"

Cesia smiled wryly. _Every time you talk to a storekeeper for more than half a minute, they try to sell you something, _she thought with a silent sigh. "No thank you."

"Are you absolutely sure?" Before she could answer, the man had ducked behind the counter and was rummaging through his wares. He straightened, a smudge of dirt on his cheek and a long, burlap-wrapped package in his hands. "This here is a sword fashioned from moonstones, steel, and opals. Perfect for the warrior mage!"

Slowly, reverently, the storekeeper untied the strings. The dirty burlap sacking fell away to reveal a smoothly curving blade of a shining silvery-white. Its serrated edge was as black as midnight, and as sharp as steel. It shone and sparkled in the half-light, and crackled and sparked with magical power in Cesia's enhanced vision. Of their own volition, her hands crept forward to touch the beautifully crafted thing.

"Uh-uh." The fat storekeeper's jolly voice broke the spell of the blade. "Only bidding buyers are allowed to touch this." His chubby fingers stroked the sword lovingly. "This thing is worth more than all my other merchandise combined!"

"That's ridiculous...how do I know if I want to buy it if I can't examine it?" Cesia snapped back.

The man raised an eyebrow skeptically. "You got a thousand gold pieces on you?" he asked, eyeing her not-too-plump money sack.

"A THOUSAND?" Cesia really hadn't meant to shout, but her voice boomed loud enough to attract the attention of the nearby customers and shopkeepers. She lowered her voice, stuttering, "You—you call a thousand gold pieces a—a _bargain_!"

"Sorry, milady. If you can't pay, you can't touch," he replied, beginning to wrap the sword up again. Cesia bit her lip...the sight of that beautiful thing being wrapped up in the dirt-encrusted cloth was almost too much to bear. "I just want to touch it once," she pleaded.

He was eying her suspiciously now, and when he spoke his tone was not quite as friendly. "Sorry...girl. Hey, come to think of it, you haven't paid for those moonstones in your basket yet, either." His grubby fingers left off tying the moonstone sword and reached across the counter. "That'll be 14 gold...if you have it."

"You think I'm a thief!" Cesia voice rose to a dangerously high register. "Why you fat, greedy little—" She stopped, suddenly aware of the crowd that had grown around her. Her face flushed a deep red. Slamming the basket of moonstones on the counter, she almost threw them back at the plump little man. "I'll buy these somewhere else."

As she stomped away from the counter, she could hear the storekeeper's voice rising above the crowd: "Terrible, terrible, I say...just some no-account little thief—say, my lord, would _you_ care to buy a moonstone sword? It's fashioned from..."

Cesia almost lost it right there—she knew dozens of curses for baldness, for bad luck, for frog-spitting and gigantic warts. The only thing that stopped her was the knowledge that the city guards would be called and she would be hauled back up to the Dragon Palace. It had taken her too long to sneak out to risk it. She sighed, cast a venomous glare at the rotund storekeeper already showing the sword to another customer, and headed off to find another moonstone seller.

_But that sword _was_ beautiful, _Cesia mused wistfully an hour later. A basket of moonstones and another smaller one of chocolate truffles (her personal weakness) lay on the bench beside her. _I've never wanted anything like I want that...it was just so perfect. I could use it, too. I can fight a little, and maybe I could help protect the Dragon Palace with it if we were attacked! Maybe I should mention it to Lord Lykouleon and he would..._

She gave herself a little shake. It was a ridiculous notion. The Dragon Palace's armory was stocked with thousands upon thousands of finely crafted swords, and all a lot cheaper than the one she had seen. She could easily just take one from there.

_But none of the dragon swords are that beautiful..._

Just then, a glimmering at the corner of her vision caught her attention. As if by magic, there in the bar across the street, sat someone with a moonstone weapon strapped to their waist. Cesia couldn't tell exactly what it was, but the milky-smooth luster of the blade not hidden under the person's long cloak was unmistakable. As in the store, Cesia was filled with an overwhelming, uncontrollable desire to stroke that glistening surface. _If I could just touch it once, I could get rid of this crazy feeling. Just once...one second! That's all! I'm sure whoever that is sitting there won't mind at all._

The baskets of her purchases completely forgotten on the bench, Cesia crossed the street. At the doorway, she paused, entranced once more by the beautiful blade. She teetered there, hesitant, then made up her mind and stepped in.

"Excuse me, sir? Madam?"

The cloaked figure half-turned. In the dim light of the bar, Cesia still couldn't see the face, but she was sure now that it was male.

"Sir?" A sudden ray of sunlight shot through the window and illuminated the room, glimmering off short, burnt-orange hair.

"Please, could I..." He was turning all the way to face her now, and slipping the cloak's hood down to see better.

"...see your—" Clear orange eyes turned to her and widened.

"—sword?" she finished in a choked whisper. The face was unforgettable, unmistakable. "Viaresu?"

CLAAAAAAAAAANG.

Suddenly, Cesia was showered with a rainbow-hued waterfall of balloons, which cascaded all around and filled her vision until everything else in the bar was blocked out. She slapped several particularly large ones away, and looked up in time to get a faceful of the large white banner that flapped down. Buried in balloons, confetti, and cloth, it was nonetheless impossible to miss the booming of a loudspeaker from behind the counter.

"CONGRATULATIONS! YOU ARE THE 3,333RD VISITOR TO THE PIGSTY BAR AND INN!" Cheering and applause in the background. "YOU WILL NOW BE SERENADED BY THE POPULAR BAND 'THE CHINCHILLAS'—" She could hear, over the sudden cacophony of guitars and drums, familiar faint footsteps slipping by her and out of the bar. She strained to listen for the direction they turned in, but the announcer broke in again with a merciless, ear-throbbing sound. "—AND YOU WILL RECEIVE 100 GOLD'S WORTH OF FREE PIGSTY BAR AND INN MERCHANDISE!"

Huge, ham-like hands reached into the colorful pile and pulled Cesia out into the bar. She was heartily slapped on the back by the many red-faced, thick-shouldered customers and almost took another dive back into the balloons. The proprietress of the place, a wizened, stoop-shouldered old woman who looked about 80, grabbed her in a powerful bear hug that belied her age. Finally, Cesia managed to break free of her well-wishers and shouted above the general racket:

"DID ANYONE SEE WHERE THE YÔKAI SITTING HERE WENT?"

The bar immediately fell silent. Too late, Cesia realized what she had said. "I—I mean the man—who was here a minute ago," she amended, but the damage had been done. "Um, I think I'll be leaving now—thank you for the prize," she mumbled hastily, and edged toward the exit.

"Wait just one minute." The doorway was blocked by a large man...or was this really a man? He had to be at least part-ogre; from Cesia's standpoint, he seemed to loom 10 feet high. She gulped nervously.

"You said yôkai."

"She definitely said yôkai."

"Why would there be a yôkai in the Pigsty? It's a good clean place..."

"...Unless it was brought her by _another _yôkai."

"Exactly."

"It makes sense," the giant blocking the door grunted. "And I know I'm not a yôkai...and my mother's not a yôkai...and neither are Fayor and Jiino and Evanji and the rest of my regulars. So that leaves _you_, girl."

"I—I'm not a yôkai!" Cesia fingered her pointed ears. "See? I'm a member of the Dragon tribe! I live at the Palace."

Her interrogator grunted, apparently unconvinced. "Don't yôkai have pointy ears too? And if you were a Dragon...wouldn't you be wearing all those fancy silks and gold and medallions that they're always sporting? You don't look _anything_ like Lord Lykouleon or the Queen."

This was true. In order to remain unnoticeable, Cesia had discarded the elegant gowns she wore at the palace for simpler, drabber clothes. She had wanted to pass for a human. Unfortunately, it appeared she had done that far too well. Without her fancy garments and jewelry, she looked nothing more than a simple peasant girl—or a yôkai disguised as one. There seemed to be no way to convince these people that she was really a Dragon, no way out of this ridiculous but dangerous predicament. She bit her lip hard, drawing blood.

_Blood._

_Of course! The Dragon Amulet..._ Cesia pulled it out and held it before the man blocking the door. "This the Light Dragon Amulet," she said firmly. "It proves that I'm a true Dragon."

He bent closer. "It looks like the real deal...but is it really the Light Dragon Amulet? And given to such an unimportant little girl too." The comment stung more than Cesia would have liked it too. "If you don't' believe me, touch it," she said shortly, hiding a grin.

Light flared up around the amulet, the contents glowing a deep ruby red. The gigantic man fell backwards through the open door, staring at his sizzling, smoking fingers in amazement. Cesia stepped neatly over his sprawled legs and left the bar with the puzzled and awed glances of the people inside following her.

Once out of sight, Cesia stopped by a tall tree, still grasping the Light Dragon Amulet in her hand. _I barely made it out of that place alive, _she thought with a shiver. _Sometimes humans can be as deadly as yôkai..._

Yôkai. Her thoughts immediately flashed to the previous incident. The whole memory felt surreal, from the dancing sunlight to the dim bar, but the face of the person she had encountered was undeniable.

_That was Viaresu...I'm sure of it. How did he get here? And where did he go? Isn't he...well, dead? This is so confusing...I need some answers; I need too—_

She paused in her jumbled planning to absorb one crucial fact.

_He's alive..._

Cesia closed her eyes and leaned back against the tree trunk for support. How was she supposed to feel? She wasn't quite sure. The emotions that she had been holding back ever since the brief glimpse of that familiar face all clamored to be let loose—relief, happiness, anger, confusion, fear, regret—a little bit of all of those. Her Light Dragon Amulet, clenched tightly in her fist, dug into her palm, a painful reminder of the time in the Dragon Palace, when it had warned Viaresu away from her...but she had told Rath he was her friend. Friends, yes; nevertheless, friends didn't always agree, especially when it concerned her safety. He had wanted to protect her: she knew his intentions were always for the best. Yet look where it had led him—down a fatal path right onto Rath's swordblade. Friends, but...

And, in the back of her mind, Rath's final question, the one she had pretended not to hear, the one she had avoided answering...

_"You said you were friends. But wasn't it more than that?"_

"Was it?" she whispered weakly to herself. She pressed her face to the tree trunk, breathing in the spicy-sweet scent of the bark, as if hoping some cryptic response might emerge from the gnarled wood.

She didn't know the answer. How could she say yes or no to the question, when she didn't really know what love was? A life as an orphan, brought up among unfeeling yôkai to whom she was nothing but a valuable possession...what did she know about love? And what did _he_ know of love? What gave him the ability to freely hand his heart to her, when she was so clumsy, so unknowledgeable, so blunderingly capable of ripping and tearing it to shreds?

"He's so stupid..." Hot tears trickled down her cheeks, onto the rough wood, into her fisted hands. "So stupid, so stupid." Cesia turned her face to the sky. "Why, Viaresu...? Stupid idiot...how can you love someone who can't even love back...?

Questions she whispered now to the smiling blue sky, but ones she hadn't dared to pose to him. She'd never asked, never, and after his death she had regretted it. Better to know, no matter how bitter the knowledge. Better to understand than to be forever wondering.

But now, by some miracle, she had been granted a second chance.

_He's back...he's back! _All the questions, held in for so long—she would ask this time, she would ask and understand. How he, a yôkai living for years among others of his kind, could ever have learned to love.

And some distant, timid corner of her mind cried out, _Maybe he'll teach me._

She wiped the tears off her face, feeling better than she had for a long time. Unbeknownst to her, ever since the night of Viaresu's death, she had been carrying around a heavy, aching burden buried in her heart. Now she felt wonderfully, marvelously light, with the anticipation that it would soon be lifted. But first things first. She had to find him.

_And to find a yôkai..._

Cesia sprinted up the path to the Dragon Palace, grim determination on her face.

_...all I need is Rath._

-------

He'd been seen.

Of all the luck...it had to be her. If only it had been one of those idiotic so-called Dragon Knights—what were they named? Rune and Thats?—he could have disposed of them without a second thought. Instead, it had been the one person that he could not kill...the one person he had come up here to see, but this chance encounter was far, far too soon.

He couldn't believe it. Sitting in that dingy bar in a remote corner of Draqueen, as far away from the palace as he could conceivably be without leaving the city—and she had been there. Coincidence? No, fate. Fate and his own weakness, his own stupidity.

That voice. Hidden in the folds of his cloak, he had heard her voice. Quietly, politely, but edged with her steely will, it had approached and asked to see the new glaive he had ordered. At the time, he'd convinced himself that he didn't really recognize it, that it couldn't have been her at all, but in his heart he _knew._ It was her voice—how could he forget?

And he'd turned then, heart in his throat, so stupid, so weak, ready to throw it all away—the planning, the saving, the hoping—for one glimpse of her face. Standing there, silhouetted against the bright windowpane, a dark shape with vague features, he had nonetheless recognized her immediately.

Cesia. That expression on her face. He would never forget.

He had planned this for so long, so terribly long. Even shrouded in the mists of that dark place the kiss of Rath's sword had sent him to, he had been thinking, scheming, plotting. To protect her, to keep her happy and safe—his obsession, his reason to struggle against the black that constantly sought to bear him down into blissful oblivion. And yet, even in his wildest dreams, he had never hoped—

never suspected—

never dared to think for even a moment—

that some faint glimmer of his own feelings would be reflected in her face. A heart, even the heart of a yôkai, was a fragile thing. So easily crushed: its high walls, its impenetrable barriers, built up by years of facing the uncaring world—all destroyed in a split second by the look in the eyes of one person.

_Cesia._

End Chapter Five

A/N:Flails uncontrollably: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooo...that last part was so...so DISGUSTINGLY mushy! TOT;;; It didn't turn out at all like I wanted it too...I massacred it! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooo... I'm so sorry! I'll try to fix it!


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